“He Never Once Said a Word to Me;” Green Bay Packers HC Matt LaFleur Breaks Silence on Disgruntled Wide Receiver

When Green Bay Packers wide receiver Christian Watson went down with a torn ACL in Week 18 of the 2024 NFL season, many presumed that the team would target the position in the upcoming 2025 NFL Draft. Additionally, Green Bay’s other top-three wideouts struggled with drops, indicating that competition needed to be added to the room to ensure that the Packers put the best team out on the field.

But very few expected them to actually select a wide receiver in the first round. After all, they had not done so since 2002. But that is exactly what they did by selecting Matthew Golden with the 23rd overall pick. The next day, in the third round, they drafted Savion Williams in the third round.

And while the drafting of these two young wide receivers was meant to make the Packers a better team, one pass catcher apparently was questioning what it meant for his future.

The Green Bay Packers Had a Chat with Wide Receiver Jayden Reed

As reported earlier this week, Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst had a meeting with third-year wide receiver Jayden Reed and his agent, Drew Rosenhaus. The meeting was to assure Reed that, despite the addition of the two young wide receivers, Green Bay still viewed him as their top wide receiver and that he was very much in their future plans.

It is unclear whether the meeting was requested by Reed and his representatives, or by the Packers themselves in an effort to be proactive.

Of course, it is easy to see what Green Bay views Reed as one of their most important players. Last season, he became just the fourth wide receiver in franchise history to log 100+ receptions, 1,000+ receiving yards, and 10+ touchdowns through his first two seasons. Romeo Doubs became the third Packers player ever to do it in 2023, and the other two are in the Pro Football Hall of Fame: James Lofton and Sterling Sharpe.

Green Bay Packers Head Coach Matt LaFleur Was Surprised by the Jayden Reed Report

It would appear that the aforementioned meeting between the Packers front office and Reed was initiated by Green Bay themselves. One of the reasons for this conclusion is that Matt LaFleur, the team’s head coach, had no idea about it:

“Well, I gotta say, the first time I saw that, it was a surprise to me because he never once said a word to me,” LaFleur said about Reed. “So, that’s all I can really speak on.

“But, certainly, you have communication with all of our guys. I tell them all the time, it’s about the collection of that whole room and what you’re going to bring to the table. And he’s a guy that’s had two years of a lot of production for us.

“So, my encouragement to him is, ‘Hey, you got to lead that room.’ Because he’s done a great job of that. He’s one of the guys out there, I mean shoot, the other day at practice… he’s coaching up Matthew Golden. So, he’s a guy I don’t worry about. He’s going to go out there, he’s going to compete, he’s going to compete at a high level, and he’s going to bring up everybody around him as well.”

It certainly seems that any thought that Reed was disgruntled can be put to rest. Clearly, he has a big role in the offense and his head coach holds him in extremely high esteem.